CIPD: Youth unemployment to fall in coming months

News | Youth unemployment | Notable shift | CIPD

Youth unemployment will drop over the course of the next few months, new findings suggest.

Research from the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development (CIPD) highlights a notable shift in employers’ attitude towards young people, finding that four in ten companies now offer work experience opportunities.

Despite the UK's recovery from the recession, it is still a challenging landscape for young people searching for their first role, but the CIPD's research suggests much is being done to deal with the issue.

The study discovered that recruitment processes are being altered to make them friendlier to young people, as nine out of ten bosses are using social media to find new talent.

On top of this, the research found that 36 per cent of employers ask for no specific educational qualifications for entry-level positions, while the number of apprenticeships has increased by more than double over recent years. More than half a million are now available.

More employers are also helping young people in HR, with over 1,500 professionals in the sector volunteering through the CIPD’s Steps Ahead mentoring initiative. This project provides career support at a one-to-one level.

Some 35 per cent of employers now engage with local schools and colleges to help youngsters find careers, marking a rise from the 29 per cent figure recorded two years ago.

Over 13,000 professionals are signed up to carry out talks in schools through the CIPD’s Inspiring The Future initiative.

On top of this, 24 per cent of employers support youth social action programmes. These are designed to help young people receive key skills for the work environment.

Katerina Rudiger, head of skills and policy campaigns at CIPD, said: “When we first started the Learning to Work programme, words such as ‘clueless’ and ‘lazy’ were frequently used to describe young people entering the workplace and many employers were quick to blame schools and education providers for failing to prepare young people for the world of work.”

Ms Rudiger went on to say that she is encouraged by the number of HR professionals taking part in voluntary work to help young people secure work.